With only a few days until his U.S. return, three-time world champion, the ?Tijuana Tornado? Antonio Margarito (38-6, 27 KOs) of Mexico finished his preparations at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy in Oxnard, CA. Margarito faces seven-time world champion and considered widely by many to be the best pound for pound fighter in the world, Manny ?Pac Man? Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KOs) of the Philippines, this Saturday, November 13th at the $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX for the vacant WBC junior middleweight championship and which will be shown live on HBO Pay-Per-View. Photos: Ricardo Conde
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We caught up Antonio Margarito and had a moment to sit down and talk to him as finished preparations for his upcoming bout, here?s what he had to say:
What was your reaction when you first heard that you will be facing seven-time world champion and who most people consider the best pound for pound fighter in the world, Manny Pacquiao.
Well, more than anything I was really happy and I was just very thankful to Bob Arum for making this fight happen. You?ve returned for the second time with trainer Robert Garcia here in Oxnard, CA can you tell us how training camp went?
Training was excellent, I?ve mentioned it before that I feel better than ever in this training camp. Even though this is our second training camp together it feels like we?ve known each other for years and we?re getting along really well. For your last fight, you only had eight weeks to prepare with Robert Garcia, but now you?ve had over three months to prepare for this fight, how comfortable are you now with Robert as your trainer and what is he like as a trainer?
To be honest with you, he?s an excellent trainer. We did a very good job and the time we hard together for his training camp was perfect. We?re very prepared and very motivated and I know we?re going to win.
How much different was this training camp than any of your previous camps and how would you rate this training camp?
It?s been the best training camp I?ve ever had for all of my fights; this training camp was the best. The weight is exactly where it should be and it?s all because of the great work we did in the gym.
Manny Pacquiao hasn?t lost since 2005 and being the most dominate fighter in boxing for the last five years, what are some of the things you?ve learned about him that will be key to defeating someone like that?
Yes, he hasn?t lost in years and he?s proven that he can go up in weight and still be very dominant but with the work we?ve put in the gym and the strategy we?ve put together we know we can win this fight. We?ve studied him and we learned a lot about Manny Pacquiao and I know with the preparation we?ve had we?ll be able to stop him.
What?s your opinion of Manny Pacquiao as a fighter?
He?s an excellent fighter. He?s accomplished what no other fighter has been able to accomplish. He started off in a very low weight class and has been able to move up so much and still be as good as he was in the lighter divisions. Now I feel he?s moved up too much and his reign stops here, I?ve put a lot of work into getting myself prepared to beat Manny Pacquiao and I know we?ll be able to do that on the 13th.
With only a few days until the fight, how do you feel at this moment?
I feel perfect, in very good condition, the weight is good. Now we?re just waiting for the day of the fight to arrive. Sparring couldn?t have gone better, we?re just maintaining our weight and we?re ready to show the work we?ve put in the gym.
You?ll be facing a fighter who is considered to be the best pound for pound fighter in the world, should you win this fight that title will now become yours, how important is it for you to win this fight?
Well, first of all and more than anything my fans, all the boxing fans deserve a great fight and that?s what I?m going to give them. I know I?ll become the knew Mexican champion this Saturday and I know that once I beat Manny Pacquiao I?ll be the best pound for pound fighter in the world.
Give us your thoughts on this fight, how do you see the fight going?
We all know that Manny is very fast and I know I can?t be as fast as he is but we?re not going in there trying to be the faster fighter. We?re going in there to neutralize his speed and stay on him every second of the fight.
You have fought some of the very best like Sergio Martinez, Paul Williams, Miguel Cotto and Shane Mosley, just to name a few, do you think Manny Pacquiao will be the toughest fight of your career so far?
We won?t if he?ll be my toughest opponent until the day of the fight. I know Manny Pacquiao comes to fight and he leaves it all in the ring, puts all his heart into each fight, just like me but I know at the end of the fight I?ll be the one with my arms raised in victory.
What kind of statement are you looking to make in this fight with Manny Pacquiao?
The same I?ve done in all my previous fights which is show everyone that I?m a fighter that fights with all his heart and is willing to lay it all on the line and to give the fans the best fight I can.
Should you win this fight with Manny Pacquiao, will you still continue to fight or will you consider retiring, and if you continue will you remain at junior middleweight or move back down to welterweight?
I have no plans on retiring anytime soon. I?ll be staying at junior middleweight, I think I would struggle to make the welterweight limit and I feel very comfortable at this weight. Even though this fight is at 150, I still feel really good at this weight but I?ll definitely be staying at junior middleweight.
There are many fighters that I?m sure would like to fight you should you win this fight, but would a rematch with either Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley or Sergio Martinez interest you and who would you prefer to fight of these three fighters?
I?ll fight anyone of them, but I leave all that up to Top Rank to make the best fights possible. I?ve never said no to fighting someone so I?ll fight who ever they put in front of me. My job is just to fight so it doesn?t matter to me who I fight.
In closing, is there anything you would like to tell the fans?
Of course, I?d like to thank everyone, thank everyone for all the support they have given me. I?m going to give them a great fight and this title is for all my fans.
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In his last outing Antonio Margarito defeated Roberto ?La Amenaza? Garcia (28-3, 21 KOs) on May 8 at the Plaza Monumental in Aguascalientes, Mexico via unanimous decision.
Also, scheduled to be on the undercard will be super bantamweight sensation Guillermo ?El Chacal? Rigondeaux (6-0, 5KOs) and undefeated NABA/NABO welterweight champion Mike Jones (22-0, 18KOs) and WBA #1 lightweight contender ?Bam Bam? Brandon Rios (25-0-1, 18KOs) who replaces injured former middleweight champion Kelly ?The Ghost? Pavlik (36-2, 36KOs), in separate bouts.
The Manny Pacquiao vs. Antonio Margarito world championship fight is being presented by Top Rank, in association with Cowboys Stadium and MP Promotions and will be produced and distributed live on HBO Pay-Per-View. Remaining tickets are priced at $700, $500, $300, $200, $100, and $50 and can be purchased at the Cowboys Stadium ticket office, by phone at 800-745-3000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.
